Chabot College
Distance Education Curriculum Support Committee
Course Proposal Form
2006/2007
Course Title & Number:
Business English Skills II
Faculty Name:
Judithann Odom
1.
Need/Justification
Business English Skills, (CAS 72L) is continuation of self-paced Business English 72K
course focusing on English fundamentals as applied to business documents It is a selfpaced business English course focusing on English intermediate fundamentals as applied
to business documents. This course satisfies a one unit elective requirement for the
Office Technology Certificate of Completion. Due to low enrollments in this course, we
believe the survival of CAS 72L may depend on offering this course online. Offering this
course online should guarantee an increased enrollment because of the accessibility of
online courses to a wider audience. Offering CAS 72L online will enable Chabot to be
competitive with other similar institutions, as well as private colleges that are already
offering similar courses online.
Online resources provide students with the opportunity to learn how to navigate freely
through the Internet and complete assignments presented on the course website. Students
submit assignments and projects using the Blackboard Online platform.
Students with special needs will find this mode of delivery beneficial because Blackboard
satisfies accessibility issues and is easily customized to accommodate physically
challenged students. In addition, challenged students will be encouraged to utilize the
computers software in the Disabled Students Resource Center for easy accessibility and
additional tutoring as necessary.
ESL students will benefit from a visual, written and printed perspective which reduces
translation errors in spoken language. In an online platform, ESL students are able to
review the content as many times as necessary. A major part of the course software
includes dictionaries, and PC terminology.
Severe budget cuts encourage California community colleges and universities to seek
alternative ways of providing instruction while seeking cost efficient ways of solving
economic and enrollment problems. DE is a common corporate strategy for educating
workforces in our community. Subsequently, by offering these courses at Chabot we
begin the development of DE skills which transfers to much of the local work force.
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2.
Course Content Delivery
CAS 72K upon approval will be offered online for the first time in spring 2006. This
course will be offered completely online using Blackboard as the delivery platform.
CAS 72K (1 unit) CR/NC, is offered on campus 54 hours a semester as a self paced
course. No lecture required. The DE mode will include:
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54 hours online, projects, and labs
2 hours of online examinations including final
1 or more hours weekly virtual office hours
phone consultations made available by instructor during regular campus office hours
Total number of contact hours will equal or be greater than the equivalent number of campus
hours.
3.
Nature and Frequency of Instructor-Student Interactions
Students will contact their instructor via E-mail or call during campus office hours, when
necessary. Links will be created for ease of access, navigation, and communication with
instructor, as well as for course materials and related course web sites.
Instructor communication and feedback will be consistent and a reply promised within a
reasonable time frame. In addition, to online communication, instructor is required to
maintain regular office hours at the Chabot College campus. Students will also have the
availability of reaching instructor via phone or to schedule a face-to-face meeting in
her/his office.
Assignments, course projects and team projects will be submitted in Blackboard
View/Complete or Browse submission options. All quizzes and final will be
administered through Blackboard. Times and dates of quizzes and final are outlined in
the course syllabus and will be enforced. The instructor will make every attempt to
monitor each student’s progress to assure that they are not falling behind.
To insure continued student success, those students requiring special attention or
additional help will be directed to counseling and other related student services.
Each student will receive a progress report after each section and quiz. Feedback for
assignments is very important, and is submitted immediately.
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4.
Assignments & Methods of Evaluation
Student assessment will be based on the completion of assignments, projects, scores on
quizzes, discussion participation, and the final. Criteria will be specified for each
component of the grade.
Grading Scale:
Completing grammar pretesting
Completing grammar exercises
Completing grammar post-testing
Competing end of unit exercises including multiple choice and fill in the blank
question
End of unit exercises and quizzes
Final exam
5.
Technical Support
Online students must have regular, reliable, and convenient access to a computer capable
of connecting to the Internet and running a web browser. Microsoft Internet Explorer is
the preferred browser for Chabot College and compatible with Blackboard. Students will
be able to access the Internet on campus, in the library, and or the DSRC to complete
assignments and final.
The Distance Education Help option will be an important technical resource for the
continued success of this course, both for instructor and students.
Technical support is vital for the success of this course. Blackboard should be
operational 24/7 to continue the flexibility that this course is intended to create.
6.
Student Services
Students who need additional assistance with reading and writing skills may want to use
the WRAC – Writing and Reading Across the Campus Center.
Additional support is made available through the Chabot College Student Lab located
upstairs in the Chabot College Library, as well as Blackboard Help Menu.
Blackboard Help for student’s link is a great resource for students and will answer many
questions quicker than email allowing students the flexibility and freedom to move at
their own pace.
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7.
Accommodations for Students with Disabilities
Blackboard meets the basic requirements for accessibility for students with disabilities.
Every effort will be made to accommodate students with special needs. Blackboard is
dedicated to its partnership with Utah State University and other companies such as
PeopleSoft/Oracle, Sun Microsystems, Prentice Hall and Saba Software companies in the
development of effective models that will enable people with disabilities to have equal
access to this platform.
8.
Class Size & First Term to be offered
Enrollment standards will be the same as the traditional class size (30). When enrollment
exceeds the standard class size, a teacher assistant maybe required to accommodate the
students and to support faculty
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